Heartland Connection
by Gunnery Sergeant
Summary: 2nd story in the "Reconnection" AU, Tony Version. Set during "Heartland". Tony muses about his relationship with Gibbs, they teach a couple of lessons, and we discover why Jackson gave a sweater to Tony and why Tony needed one. Gibbs/Tony SLASH.
1. Chapter 1

**Heartland Connection**

**By Gunnery Sergeant**

_This is a sequel to "Reconnection, Tony version"._

Thanks to **Finlaure** for the betareading! 

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Anthony DiNozzo sat down on a bench in Stillwater Central Park, a grand name for a small rectangle of grass, some bushes, a few trees and a couple of swings.

The evening was peaceful, still warm for mid-October, and he relaxed against the back of the bench as he looked toward the nearby Sheriff Office.

Gibbs was still inside, dealing with the paperwork connected with the arrest of Nick Kingston and the two miners that had killed Corporal Taylor and had almost beaten to death Corporal LaCombe.

Gibbs had told Tony to go to his father's home and rest, but he wasn't that tired. He preferred to wait for his boss here. Perhaps, when he was done, the older man would agree to sit there with him for a while, and they could have some time in private before they returned to the house.

Tony longed for some quality time with his lover. He had been home from his stint as Agent Afloat for only two weeks, and they had yet to make up for the four months they had been separated.

He had hated every moment of his assignment on the _Ronald Reagan_ and the _Seahawk_, and he hoped to never set foot on a ship again. He had hated the constant rocking of the floor, the ever present buzzing of the engines, and the noise of the landing and departing crafts. He had hated the lack of privacy and to be in close quarters with 5000 people that had distrusted him because they saw him as the cop of the ship.

He had hated his loneliness and missed his friends and the chance to be his goofy, sometime even foolish self. He had missed teasing McGee, verbally sparring with Ziva, listening to Ducky's ramblings and hugging Abby.

Most of all, he had missed his boss and lover: his quiet intensity, his abrasive but charismatic personality, and Gibbs' relentlessness, both on the job and in their relationship.

Tony had never been in a true, committed relationship before – his time with Jeanne didn't count – and he hadn't known how good it felt to be part of a real couple, and how much he would miss his partner when separated from him.

He hadn't just missed the sex-- although, being Tony DiNozzo, he had missed it a lot.

He had also missed working with Gibbs on his boat, watching movies with the older man and enjoying his wry commentaries, even running errands together. Simple things that always made Tony feel he belonged somewhere, that he was part of something important.

Most of all, he had missed those precious times when his lover's mask fell and he allowed himself to be what he really was; a vampire.

The mere idea still caused a thrill to run along his spine. Not just because of the whole strangeness of his lover's real nature, but because of the trust involved in the fact he let Tony see it.

Gibbs trusted him to never reveal his secret and Tony trusted his lover to not hurt him when he sunk his fangs in his neck and drew blood.

Tony had never been one to equal pain to pleasure, but boy, he had come to crave the sharp burn of Jethro's bites or the slight stinging sensation when his lover ran his fangs over his cock or nipples, tantalizing, teasing and always so careful not to hurt him.

He groaned and shifted his weight on the bench to relieve the pressure on his groin. That wasn't the moment to get hard. He had the feeling Jethro wouldn't agree to have sex in his father's house, with the rest of the team near, no matter what a turn on doing something risky could be.

He shook his head with fondness. His lover was an old fashioned man, and he liked him exactly how he was.

As he returned to the vampire thing, Tony was sometimes surprised by how well he had reacted to Gibbs' revelation and adapted his beliefs to the discovery that vampires, probably the most celebrated 'fantasy' villains really existed.

He still remembered when, as a child, he had been scared of the vampire hiding on his canopy bed. That kind of irrational fear had stayed with him as he grew up, so much so that he had told Kate vampires were his _bête__ noire_. But now, everything had changed and he was no longer afraid.

That was probably due to the fact the real vampires were less scary than the fantasy ones, but most importantly it was due to the fact it had been Gibbs that introduced him to that notion.

Tony had trusted Leroy Jethro Gibbs as his boss from the first day he had started working for NCIS, and the trust had only increased along the years. A trust that became so strong that even learning about the older man's real nature hadn't shaken it.

As for their relationship, Tony had been attracted to Gibbs right from the first time he had seen him in the Baltimore Police precinct.

Back then, it had just been a matter of physical attraction, of him having the 'hots' for a handsome, strong, older man. He had reined in his feelings because he had thought Gibbs would have broken his legs and fired him on spot if he ever made a pass at him, and he really liked to work for NCIS.

Years had passed and while Tony had dated more women than he cared to remember plus some occasional guy, his attraction to Gibbs had never gone away. Instead, it had become stronger the more he had come to know the older man, and care, respect, and admiration had been thrown into the mix.

He had begun to crave Gibbs' approval and rare praises, and secretly enjoyed every time his boss had smacked his head, for it had been highly unlikely the older man would ever bestow any other kind of touch to him.

In time he had come to realize that what he felt for the older man was more than loyalty to a mentor, more than friendship with a colleague, and more than physical attraction to his blue-eyed, iron-willed boss.

He had refused a promotion in Spain in order not to leave Gibbs and you don't throw away such an opportunity if you don't have a very damn good reason to do it—and that reason hadn't been his concerns for his boss' still confused memories or his undercover mission for Jenny. Tony wasn't so altruistic—and he had known it.

Deep inside he had known the reason he hadn't wanted to leave, but he had stubbornly refused to call it by its name—until the evening Gibbs had revealed his real nature and calmly announced he loved Tony.

It had been only then that he had found the strength to admit to himself he also loved his boss.

It had taken him only a few hours of soul-search to decide he wanted to be with Gibbs and couldn't care less if the older man were a vampire, a werewolf or an X-Man.

He was Leroy Jethro Gibbs and he loved him. As he had later told his lover, it was as simple, or as complex, as that.

TBC

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	2. Chapter 2

Tony blinked and returned to the present, grinning when he realized he was no longer alone.

"Daydreaming Tony?" Gibbs asked as he sat by his side, an appropriate distance between them.

"Nah, remembering."

"What?"

"An evening ten months ago, in your basement," he answered softly, turning his head toward his lover.

Gibbs' eyes glinted in the lamplight. "I remember it too," he said.

They returned to look in front of them, at the deserted streets and closed shops.

"I thought you had gone to rest. I know how tiring it can be to drive with Abby."

"My arm is gonna hurt tomorrow, but I'm not tired. I waited for you here 'cause I thought we could spend some time alone before going back."

Gibbs nodded, but said nothing.

"So," Tony asked after a while, "how does is it feel to be back home?"

"This is not home. It stopped being one after my mother's death. Home was wherever I lived with Shannon and Kelly. Home is in DC, with you and the team."

Tony smiled at the soft words. "Home is where the heart is, huh?"

"Yeh, I guess so."

"You're a romantic, Jethro…but don't worry, I won't tell anyone," he hasted to add as his lover glared at him.

"How was it to see your Dad again?" Tony asked after a few seconds, unable to curb his curiosity. He knew Gibbs hadn't seen his old man since Shannon and Kelly's funeral in 1991.

"We talked. Said things we should have told long ago. Healed some old wounds." He saw Gibbs smile and he nodded to himself.

It was nice to know that at least one of them had been able to patch up things with their family. He could only wish one day he would be able to do the same with his own father.

"What about the car? I saw you smile ear to ear as you drove past us."

"She's a beauty, huh?" his lover grinned as he turned to face Tony. "I bought her shortly before I joined the Corps. Got her in junkyard before they demolished her. I wanted to restore her, but I never managed to do it."

"I guess it would have been difficult to work on her since you didn't set a foot in town for 32 years. So, did Jackson do it?"

"Yep. Just like I wanted her, right to the colour," Gibbs shook his head, as if he couldn't understand why his father had done it.

Tony risked taking his lover's hand in his own. "Your Dad loves you, Jethro," he said gently but seriously. "No matter what happened between you two, he loves you."

"As I love him," Gibbs answered, briefly squeezing his hand before letting it go. "It just took me a hell of long time to remember it."

"You know what they say, better late than never."

"Yeh…" Gibbs answered, but Tony sensed his regret even in that one, short word.

Probably those almost eighteen years spent away from his father were weighting on him more than he had thought they would. Perhaps, Tony mused, the realization of how old his father had become during their separation had been a brusque reminder of how short human life was if compared with the eternity stretching in front of a vampire.

Tony wondered how Gibbs would react when his Dad would die…or when he himself would. He knew that drinking his lover's blood regularly-- something he hadn't yet done because, well, he wasn't sure he would be able to do it and didn't want to hurt or offend Jethro—would slow down his aging process and keep him healthy and alive for far longer than his natural, human life span, but one day he too would die and he was suddenly concerned about Gibbs' well being after he was gone. His earlier light mood disappeared and Tony turned to face his companion.

"Boss?" he said, using the honorific that was also his most cherished endearment for his lover.

"Yes?" Gibbs answered, tilting his head.

"Forgive me if I'm gonna ruin the mood, but how do vampires cope with death?"

"What?" the older man replied with a frown.

"I mean, Jethro…I know I won't live forever. What will happen after I'm gone? I, well, I sort of worry about it. It took you almost twenty years to get over Shannon and Kelly's deaths … I…please tell me it will get easier with time…" Tony almost begged.

Gibbs shook his head as he answered softly, "Can't tell you that, Tony. It doesn't get easier. Losing you…will break my heart. But Nature was merciful with vampires. If we want it, we can ask other vampires to help us to cope with our grief."

"How?"

"I'm not really sure, but I remember that at Shannon and Kelly's funeral, Bill Hendricks offered to help me. He said he could make sure I would only remember the joy I felt having my girls, and forget the pain I felt because I lost them."

"Sort of dampening your emotions?"

"Yeh…perhaps. Anyway, back then I refused his offer. I thought it was a coward's way out. Now…well…" Gibbs' voice trailed off as he shrugged.

Tony turned on the bench to face his lover and not minding where they were, he took Jethro's face between his hands.

"Promise me you'll accept Bill's offer when my time comes," he urged.

"Tony-" Gibbs began, unease and irritation seeping in his tone, but Tony stopped his words by putting a hand over his mouth.

"Promise me. We live a dangerous life. I could die every day I'm out in the streets and I don't want you to stop living another time because of it. I don't want you to deny your heritage again. Please, Jethro, promise me."

Gibbs looked at him for a very long time, his blue eyes boring into his own, and then he nodded curtly, "I promise."

"Good," Tony said with a smile, as his serious, sober mood disappeared with the same rapidity it had appeared.

He lowered his hands from his lover's face and settled again against the bench, enjoying the stillness of the night as he looked up at the star-filled sky.

Silence fell over them, but it was a comfortable, even intimate one.

Since the night of his revelation, Gibbs had been quite open about himself and his feelings, perhaps because he felt Tony basked in their moments of sharing, or perhaps just because he needed it after keeping everything inside for so long. That, however, didn't mean Jethro had become a talker, but he didn't mind it. He had learned to read the meaning behind his lover's silences and he no longer felt compelled to break them as it had been shortly after they had got together.

After a few moments Gibbs' yawned and said, "Come on, time to go to bed."

"Together?" Tony teased as they stood up.

"Would love to, but I don't think it's prudent," his lover answered as they crossed the park toward the exit.

"Yeh, we can't risk upsetting your Dad."

"Wasn't thinking of him."

"Oh. Yes. You're right. Probie wouldn't ever look at you or me in the eye again without blushing, Ziva would snicker and tease me for the rest of my life and Abby would probably ask if she can watch us…" Tony said with a grin, and his companion snorted in amusement.

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Some action coming up in the next chapter...

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	3. Chapter 3

Thanks to Doris for the review! :)

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They had almost reached the exit when suddenly Gibbs stopped and tilted his head up, his nostrils flaring as he sniffed the air.

"Something wrong, Boss?"

"We have company," Gibbs answered, just a moment before five men stepped out of the bushes where they had been hiding. Their faces were covered by hoods and a couple of them held baseball bats.

"Oh shit," Tony exclaimed as, looking behind them, he spotted five more men closing in. "I guess Winslow didn't take his son-in-law's arrest well." There was no doubt in his mind Winslow was behind this: the thugs' faces were hidden by hoods, but they had 'miner' written all other themselves.

"Ya think, Tony?" Gibbs replied, giving him a brief look.

"What we do now?" They were both armed, but he had the feeling his lover planned to resolve the matter with his bare hands.

"Just follow my lead."

"As usual."

They waited back to back as the men closed in and surrounded them. Tony smelled alcohol on the thugs' clothes and breath and knew there was no way they would be able to reason with them.

Too bad for the miners.

There was a moment of stillness and then, even before Gibbs could identify themselves as federal agents, the thugs attacked.

A man holding a baseball bat came toward Tony and he ducked to avoid the blow, using his weight to push the guy back. The miner barely budged and Tony had to recur to all the tricks he had learned working out with Gibbs and Ziva to have the upper hand over him.

When finally the miner lay on the grass, moaning and nursing a broken nose, Tony turned around to face another assailant. He discovered with surprise that, but for the two men still fighting against Gibbs, all the others were lying on the ground, moaning or writhing in pain.

He was stunned. He knew his boss had been trained to fight in the Marine Corps, but dispatching seven men in less than five minutes seemed too much even for a trained warrior.

But not for a vampire, Tony realized with a start as he watched his lover fight.

Gibbs moved blindingly fast, avoiding his attackers' assaults and striking out against them at every opportunity, his blows precise and with no waste of energy. It was a matter of seconds before the two miners joined their mates on the ground.

Tony approached, noticing that the older man was barely winded and his eyes were almost black, his pupils were so dilated. There was a feral look on his face, one that screamed 'danger' and 'predator'.

"I'm glad you never move so fast when we work out in the gym," he said lightly, hoping his words would bring his lover down from his fighting mood.

It worked, because even if the smile Gibbs flashed him showed his fangs were still down, his eyes returned to be their normal blue and his posture relaxed a bit.

"I was taught since I was a child to keep my abilities in check. My mother told me I needed to blend with the humans and that meant not doing anything that would make me stand out too much. I always obeyed her teachings, even when it meant to stay there and take blows I could have easily deflected."

Tony nodded and smiled. He finally understood the amused and knowing look he had seen on Gibbs' face the time he overheard him say to Kate and McGee that he had let their boss win on purpose during their work out in order to keep him happy.

"What we do with them?" Tony asked, looking at their attackers, who at least had the common sense to stay where they were and not try to get up.

"Nothing. I'm not in the mood to arrest, identify and press charges against all of them. Let them go home and explain to their wives why they have a broken nose or a black eye or won't be able to perform in the bedroom for a few days…"

Tony snickered and nodded. "So, home now, Boss?"

"Not yet. We have to pay a visit first," Gibbs said, and the scary expression of before reappeared on his face.

"Winslow?"

"Yeah."

It didn't take long to reach the Winslow residence. As they climbed the steps to the porch, Gibbs said, "I'll deal with him. You make sure Emily and the kid do not come down."

"Okay, Boss."

Gibbs knocked on the door, and it opened almost at once.

"Have you taught them a-" Winslow's voice died when he realized they were not his miners.

"Yeah, Chuck," Gibbs answered, pushing the door wide open and stepping inside, "We taught them a lesson they won't easily forget, and now it's your turn."

Tony noticed that his lover's fangs were still down and Gibbs wasn't doing anything to conceal them. In fact, it looked like he wanted Winslow to see them.

Winslow backed into the atrium as his old foe advanced, and Tony stopped by the stairs, ready to block Emily and Chris should they be awakened because of the noise.

"Listen, Leroy…I was wrong…but I told them just to shake you up a bit…no lasting damages…" Winslow's pathetic attempts at placating Gibbs were cut short when the other man wrapped his right hand around his neck and raised him off the floor.

Winslow dug his fingers into Gibbs' forearm, trying to make him loosen his grip, but he reacted in the opposite way, cutting off his breath a little more, although not enough to harm the man.

"Now you'll stop struggling and listen to me," Gibbs growled a deep, rumbling sound that Tony had never heard come from a man before. Tony took a perverse delight upon seeing the terror in the older man's eyes. It suited the bastard just fine.

Winslow ceased his struggle and Gibbs stared at him, his eyes unblinking and fixed.

"See these, Chuck?" he hissed, showing his fangs again. "These are the reason my father shot in air to separate us the last time we fought. It wasn't to save my ass as you thought—it was to save your sorry hide before I ripped your throat apart." He paused then added, "That day I told you I would kill you the next time I saw you, but luckily for you I've more control now."

A strange, dripping noise was heard in the room and Tony realized what it was only when he saw Gibbs step back from the puddle near Winslow's feet.

The other man had wet his pants-literally.

"You're a pathetic coward," Gibbs hissed, grimacing in disgust as he adjusted his grip on Winslow's neck and brought his face closer to his own and said, slowly and clearly. "Now listen to me…You will forget what happened here this night."

"Yes," Winslow answered his voice flat and his eyes blank.

"You won't try to get even with me by bothering my father in any way."

"Yes."

"You'll offer financial compensation to the family of Corporal Taylor."

"Yes."

"You will recognize Ethan LaCombe as your son and give him his birthright."

"Yes."

"You'll do all of this, or I swear the next time we meet I'll make you taste my fangs."

Winslow's body was shaken by tremors and Tony thought he would have pissed himself again if he still had some in his bladder.

"Yes."

"Good. Now go to bed, and sleep."

Tony watched as Gibbs lowered Winslow on the floor and how the other man walked past him to reach the stairs, his steps slow like a sleepwalker's and his eyes fixed.

"Let's go, Tony," Gibbs said moving to the door, and he was only too happy to follow him outside.

Back on the street, Tony couldn't contain himself any longer. "That was so cool, Boss! First you growled like a lion or a wolf or a bear…pick the one you like most… and then you looked like a Jedi master but for the fact you didn't use your hand while you…did what you did. How is it called?"

"We call it power of persuasion. Vampires use it to keep donors calm and relaxed and to make them forget what happened to them. We can also use it to wipe off people' memories in case of accidental discovery."

"This discovery wasn't accidental at all. You wanted him to see you—and to be terrified by you."

"Yeh," Gibbs answered. "I wanted him to be scared. He won't remember what happened tonight, but you can bet that every time he thinks of me, he will feel the same fear."

"I've the feeling this wasn't just payback for tonight's attack."

"Nope. Chuck Winslow has always been a bully, using his family's status to get what he wanted and harassing those weaker or poorer than him. One of his favourite victims was one of my friends, a fatherless boy named Joey Reed."

The name sounded familiar to Tony; he had already heard it from Gibbs. Oh yes, now he remembered… "Wasn't he the boy whose father was killed by a vampire when you were a child?"

"Yep."

Tony smiled. "I see it now. You clashed with Winslow because you wanted to protect Joey."

Gibbs nodded. "There was a part of me that felt guilty because I was a vampire as was the monster that had killed Joey's father. I felt it was my duty to protect him, since he had no one else but his mother to look after him."

Tony shook his head with fondness. He could just imagine six-year-old Leroy looking after his friend, ready to ball his little fists to keep the bad guys away.

"You're a softie, Boss," he teased as they stepped into Jackson Gibbs' garden.

"Ya think, DiNozzo?" Gibbs answered, as he grabbed Tony by an arm and pulled him against his body, pressing his erection into his thigh.

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	4. Chapter 4

Thanks to Doris From Austria and bananagal1 for their reviews!

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"Boss…" he croaked, but couldn't say anything more because his mouth was seized by a demanding kiss.

He responded eagerly, but when he pulled back his head, he breathed, "Jethro, not that I'm complaining, but didn't you say we need to be careful here?"

"That was before our run-in with the miners…" Gibbs kissed him again, hard and passionate. "When I let my instinct loose like that…I need time to bring it back under control…I have all this energy inside, and need to dispell it…"

"Oh, you want to fuck…" he leered, as his groin tightened with anticipation.

"Yeh…soon…." as he hungrily kissed him.

"You want to drink too?" Tony asked, when he managed to free his mouth.

In the beginning of their relationship, Gibbs had drunk from him almost every time they had sex, but after a while the drinking had become far less frequent, in order to avoid the fact his lover would begin to look visibly younger than his fifty years, something that would be difficult to explain to people.

"Yeh…Bad…" Gibbs was looking like he was about to jump him on the spot and Tony decided they had talked enough.

"Let's take this inside," he said as they moved to the door. After some uncharacteristic fumbling with the keys on Gibbs' part, they managed to open it, quickly walking upstairs to Jethro's old room.

Tony had just the time to catch a glimpse of a few faded posters on the walls and toy cars and boats on the shelves before Gibbs was on him again, all hot mouth and possessive hands.

Jethro was a surprisingly gentle lover and usually liked to take his time with him, but this night he was like a man possessed.

Tony cringed when his lover grabbed his sweater and tore it apart, making buttons fly in every direction, but any thought about it fled away when he felt rough hands on his hips and a hot mouth on his chest. The older man was so talented with his lips, tongue and…fangs.

After a few minutes of Gibbs' ministrations, Tony was as frantic as Jethro to feel their bare skin come in contact, thus they helped each other get rid of their clothes until they were both naked.

His lover kissed him deeply and urgently, his fangs clashing with Tony's teeth then began backing him toward the bed.

Tony took a good look at the narrow cot and old wooden frame and decided it wasn't up for anything too athletic or energetic. So he gestured for Gibbs to sit down on one side of the bed and murmured throatily, "Do you have any lube?"

"No, but I have the cream I use for my hands in my overnight bag," was the husky answer.

Tony nodded, pleased, and walked to the bag. He knew that the cream, while not specifically studied for internal use, was not toxic either. Jethro used it because his hands had the tendency to get too dry and rough during the autumn and winter months.

He opened the bag, took the cream container out and then returned to the bed, taking a good look at his naked lover.

Gibbs was in fantastic shape for a man in his fifties, and not just because drinking Tony's blood was preventing him from aging further. He had looked fucking good even during their first time together, after almost eighteen years spent without drinking a single drop of blood.

In the past Tony had gone mostly for stocky, muscled guys, liking his lovers to be stronger than him. Gibbs was stronger than him too, but he was lean, slender, without a single ounce of fat on him. He had a body built to be fast, quick and agile, and it made sense, since vampires were, by nature, predators. Something that had never been more evident than that evening, in the way his lover had moved during the fight with the miners, growled to Winslow and now in the hungry way Jethro's eyes were observing his every move.

It wasn't the time to be a tease. So he unscrewed the container, squeezed some cream on his fingers and reached behind his body to quickly prepare himself. When he was done, he approached the still sitting Gibbs and applied the cream on his lover's hard cock, enjoying how the older man hissed when the cool salve touched his over-sensitized skin.

Tony spread the cream on Jethro's shaft, until it was completely slick. Then he straddled the older man's lap, his bent knees at both sides of his lovers hips and hooked an arm around Gibbs' neck for balance, he used the other hand to guide his mates erection to his opening. Then he sank down, impaling himself.

A loud moan escaped both of them. God! He would never get used to the way Jethro's girth stretched him, fitting so well inside of him as if he had been made for it.

After a moment of stillness, during which they both worked to bring their excited bodies under control, Tony started moving. Up, down, grinding, rolling his hips, all the moves that made him feel good, that made Jethro's cock rub against his most sensitive spot.

"Tony…" Gibbs moaned and he smiled as he looked at his lover's handsome face.

He liked it when Jethro let him in charge of their lovemaking. He increased his pace and he rode his lover harder and harder, helped in his efforts by Gibbs' hold on his hips.

He put his arms around Jethro's back, pulling him as close as possible, as the pace of their movements increased even more. He cried out as his lover's hand sneaked between their bellies to take hold of his cock, stroking his hand up and down the shaft to match Tony's rhythm.

"Come, Tony, come," Jethro coaxed him, his voice hoarse with desire, and he did just that, biting down on Gibbs' shoulder, just as his lover sank his fangs in his neck and spurted inside him.

When Tony recovered his wits, he found himself slumped against Jethro, head buried into his neck. The older man was still inside him, and he clenched his muscles, wishing to keep him there as long as possible. After a few moments, he felt his lover's spent cock slip away from him and he regretfully decided it was time to stand and clean himself before he dressed and went to sleep on the couch in the living room.

Tony raised his head from Jethro's shoulder, opened his eyes—and froze.

Straight in front of him, on the threshold of the bedroom, his hand still on the knob of the door stood Jackson Gibbs. It was impossible to know how long he had been there, but judging from his wide eyes and open mouth, it was safe to say it had been long enough.

After a moment of stillness, during which Tony stared at Jackson from above Jethro's shoulder, unsure about what he should do, the older man took a step back and closed the door as silently as he had opened it.

"Tony," Jethro murmured a few seconds later, as he too raised his head, "That was good."

"Oh yes," Tony answered, deciding not to say anything about Jackson's appearance, as least for now. "Very good indeed."

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	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Thank you to bananagal1 and Gina for the reviews!

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After a quick kiss, Tony climbed off his lover and stretched his back. "It's time for you to go to bed and for me to take the couch downstairs." He wouldn't have liked anything more than sleep with Gibbs in his narrow bed, but he knew Ziva woke up very early in the morning and he didn't want to have to explain to her why he wasn't sleeping on the couch or why he was coming out from their boss' bedroom.

Gibbs just nodded. Together they padded to the bathroom to clean up and then got dressed. Tony picked up his torn sweater and studied it. "Boss!" he whined, "It was Cavalli's!"

"It was in the way," his lover replied as he slid beneath the sheets and his sated, well-fucked look made Tony forget about the sweater.

He walked to the bed and bent down to kiss good night to the older man. "Sleep well, Jethro," he said softly.

"You too, Tony," was the equally soft and sleepy reply.

Tony walked out of the bedroom and down the stairs. The house was enveloped by darkness and silence, thus it perhaps meant Jackson too had gone to sleep…

The lights of the living room were switched on as soon as he put a foot inside and he groaned inwardly. No such luck.

Jackson was sitting on an armchair near the couch and was looking at him. Tony cursed under his breath. He should have buttoned his shirt all the way up. As it was, it left his neck exposed and the bite Jethro had for once forgotten to make disappear was clearly visible.

He stood there, not knowing what to do or say, until Jackson patted the couch and said, "Come sit here, Tony. I don't bite. I'll leave that to Leroy."

Tony blushed, but the kind and teasing tone reassured him. Jackson wasn't angry.

He sat down, and folded his torn sweater on the arm of the couch as he gathered his thoughts.

"Mr. Gibbs, I apologize-"

"I told you, it's Jack, and you don't have to apologize. I do. I should have known better than enter Leroy's room without knocking. But he is my son and a part of me still thinks of him as the boy he was when he last slept in this house. It didn't cross my mind he might not have been alone. Now I know better, and I'll make sure to always knock should you and Leroy return to visit."

Tony nodded, relieved Jackson seemed to have taken it so well. Given his age and the fact he lived in a small town, his view on same-sex relationship could have been very restricted.

"Have you and Leroy been together for long?" Jackson asked.

"Ten months—and please, don't mention it in front of our colleagues. We are keeping this a secret."

"Oh. And is it serious?" the older man inquired with a frown, and Tony realized that the seriousness or not of their relationship was more important for him than the gender of his son's lover.

So he opened the collar of his shirt and touched the mark on his neck. "See this, Jack?"

"Yeah," the older man replied, perplexed.

"This isn't a hickey. This isn't a love bite… no, well, it's a love bite too, but more to the point, this is a vampire bite. Jethro just drank from me."

A broad smile appeared on Jackson's careworn features. "_You know_. He told you."

"Yes, right from the start."

"Then he must really love and trust you."

"As much as I love and trust him."

"Good." Jackson patted Tony on the knee and stood up. He walked toward the door and stopped. He turned around and looking straight at him, he murmured, "Take care of my boy, Tony. He needs someone to do that, and I think he too knows it, even if he will never admit it aloud."

Tony nodded and answered seriously, "I know, Jack, and I will. Always."

**---**

The following morning, Team Gibbs took leave from Jackson and Stillwater. The sun was shining, but the air was cool and Tony was grateful for the sweater Gibbs' father had left for him to find folded on the back of the couch when he had awakened.

Tony watched as Jackson was engulfed by one of Abby's enthusiastic hugs, shook hands with McGee, and when they moved to the car, he approached the older man.

"Uh, Jack, I... I just... I gotta know some things. I got a ton of questions," he began. There were so many things he wanted to know about Jethro's life in Stillwater…

"You can have two, DiNozzo," Gibbs said firmly, stepping by his side.

"Where do I start?" Tony wondered aloud, playing with the keys of the car as his mind spun with possible questions he was pretty sure his lover wouldn't ever answer to.

"You got one left," Gibbs commented dryly.

Tony turned to look at him and protested, "Well, that doesn't count, 'cause that..." His voice died under his boss' glare. "Okay... the rules," he capitulated, returning his attention to Jackson. "Did he learn them from you? I mean, did you teach him all the rules?"

The older man shook his head, a puzzled look on his face. "I'm sorry, son. I didn't teach him much of anything."

Gibbs smirked, and snatched the car keys from Tony's hand. "He taught me to drive."

Tony groaned aloud. "Oh, no, Boss, not backseat, middle hump. I... I got that... that thing we talked about." He knew that his lover had blindingly-fast vampire reflexes and was always in control of the car even when he drove at break-neck speed. However that wasn't enough to prevent his stomach for being upset for hours afterward when he was forced to make long trips on the backseat with his boss behind the steering wheel.

"Take them," Jackson said, handing his son the keys of the Charger. "It's just cluttering up the garage."

Gibbs looked at his father for a moment and then handed the keys of the sedan to Tony.

"Thank you, Boss!" he commented, relieved.

"They are for Ziva! You're riding back with me."

Tony smiled. Riding shotgun with Gibbs wasn't so bad and the idea of spending a few hours alone with his lover was great. Also, he really, really wanted to see the interior of the Charger.

"You're a great man, Jackson Gibbs," he said, as they shook hands. "Thanks for the sweater," he added, looking straight in the older man's eyes, and making sure he was thanking him for much more than a piece of clothes.

Jackson nodded, eyes bright, and after a final look, Tony walked to the sedan and gave the keys to Ziva. He watched from there as Gibbs and his father talked softly and then embraced, and wisely refrained to comment when his lover stepped back from his Dad's arms with far too bright eyes.

Gibbs took another look at his father and then turned toward Tony, "Let's go, DiNozzo, we have no time to lose."

Tony smiled at Jackson as he walked past him, following his lover to the garage where the Charger was.

He pushed the door open as Gibbs switched on the engine and soon they were on the road, driving toward Washington.

They had just covered a mile or so when his lover slowed down and pulled up just in front of the train station and turned off the engine.

Tony looked at him, perplexed. "Something wrong, Boss?" he asked when he noticed the way Gibbs was looking at the platform. "Jethro?"

"You see that bench?" his lover said, his voice very low.

"Yes."

"It's where Shannon and I talked for the first time. We were both waiting for the train and I asked her if we could sit together."

Tony nodded, but said nothing. He felt sure enough of the depth of their relationship to let his lover enjoy his bitter-sweet memories of his first love.

After a while Gibbs blinked and turned to look him with a strange glint in his eyes and a smirk on his face.

"Wanna know who taught me rules?" he asked as he switched back on the engine.

Tony nodded eagerly. "Oh yeah, I really wanna know."

"Then I'm gonna tell you—but first I want to know how the hell my father knew you needed a sweater…"

THE END -- To be followed by "**Secret Connection**" and "**Failed Connection**".

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That's all for now. I hope you enjoyed reading this story as much as I did writing it. Let me know, OK? I would love if this story reached the 50-review mark, so review, OK? Thanks!

As I wrote above, there are two more stories in this Vampire! Gibbs universe- Tibbs version. If you add this story to your alerts list, I'll post a short note when the sequel, "Secret Connection" is up.


	6. Chapter 6

21-10-2009 - Yep, dating this as we Europeans do 

A short note to let you know the sequel to this story, "Secret Connection", has been posted today. Check my profile for the link…and happy reading!


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